


Moon Marked and Touched by Sun

by TheDruidIsIn



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types, The Avengers - Ambiguous Fandom, Thor (Movies)
Genre: But Will Circle Back, Characters speaking Yiddish, Characters speaking spanish, Disabled Character of Color, F/F, F/M, Female Character of Color, Female Jewish Character, Jewish Character, Jewish Darcy Lewis, LGBTQ Character of Color, LGBTQ Female Character of Color, LGBTQ Jewish Character(s), Latina OC, Latina Original Female Character(s) - Freeform, Loki (Marvel) Needs a Hug, Loki's gender fuckery will be explored here, May or may not make references to norse mythology; we'll see, On The Back Burner, Other, POV Character of Color, Queer Character of Color, Queer OC, Queer Original Female Character(s), Soft Hiatus, This fic is not out to hurt you, Witches, then removed the virginity part, this story is not out to hurt you, witch characters, yes I took part of the premise from Jane the Virgin
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-05-25
Updated: 2020-05-26
Packaged: 2021-03-03 02:53:38
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 11,039
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24377548
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheDruidIsIn/pseuds/TheDruidIsIn
Summary: Luz's life was going smoothly in the aftermath of the Battle of New York.  She'd quickly become close with Darcy Lewis and landed a job at Bodhi Academy. Things in her otherwise normal life take a wild turn when she is accidentally artificially inseminated with a sample from Captain America.  Add meeting a Loki on house arrest into the mix, and nothing goes as expected.Addendum: this fic is in a soft hiatus on the back burner but I’ll circle back to it.
Relationships: Darcy Lewis/Loki, Darcy Lewis/Original Female Character(s), Loki (Marvel)/Original Female Character(s)
Kudos: 8





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Yes, this fic does hearken back to those early days of MCU fic where the Avengers all live at the Tower together, and yes, Loki is there (on house arrest/probation). Yes, part of the premise is inspired by Jane the Virgin, just without the virginity part. Loki's gender fuckery will be explored here. Still can't make my mind up if I want any mythology references in here, and how much/how many.

I.

As Luz sat on the cool faux leather of the examination room table, Dr. Alver, a tall, round-faced woman with sandy-colored hair entered. The doctor seemed stressed. For one, the smile she gave Luz wobbled, while her entire appearance belied an underlying sense of anxiety. Under the harsh florescence of the light, her milky skin took on an even more pallid appearance than usual, and the circles underneath her eyes appeared far more pronounced than they normally would be as her eyes flickered nervously to the twenty-one-year-old that had celebrated her birthday only three weeks prior. For some reason, Dr. Alver wouldn’t quite meet her gaze even when looking directly at her, as if afraid to engage with her. That sent an ominous shiver down Luz’s spine, but she pushed it aside in favor of the relief she felt at seeing the other woman. Surely she would have answers.

“Oh, Dr. Alver, thank you for seeing me, oh thank god—you know, whichever one you worship. It’s the craziest thing, right? These pregnancy tests keep coming back positive. I-I-I keep taking them. Like, I have nonstop ever since that nausea and fainting spell on the bus that got me sent to the ER where that insane doctor kept insisting I was pregnant. There’s got to be a reason these tests are coming back positive, like—like hormones or…...” Seeing the doctor cringe into her soul and look as if she wished she would die right there, Luz’s worry only increased tenfold. “Oh god, it’s cancer, isn’t it? Ovarian or Uterine or...” She flopped back dejectedly onto the examination table, eyes sliding shut in newfound grief. “I’m too young to die.”

Dr. Alver gave a sharp, abortive jerk of her head. “N-no! You’re not—you’re not _dying_ ,” she fumbled over her words, trying to reassure her patient, who’d only come in for her first formal examination the last time they’d met. “You don’t have c-cancer. You’re…” She took a deep breath. “You’re really pregnant, Miss Ortega.”

Luz’s eyes snapped open. “It’s Espinosa-Ortega, and that’s simply not possible,” she returned calmly, “I’ve only had one relationship with a cisgender man, and that was three years ago and we used protection.”

Dr. Alver spasmodically wrung her hands. “Well you see, there, there _is_ a reason, and the reason that the tests keep coming back positive—” She took an obviously fortifying breath before plowing on with her explanation. “It’s that about two weeks ago, I accidentally artificially inseminated you.”

At first, Luz could only sit completely frozen in shock. For a moment, life seemed to come to a standstill, and then disbelief, horror, and outrage welled up like magma rising. “You what?!” Luz screeched feelingly as she sat up, long braid whipping up and smacking onto her left shoulder. “Why wasn’t I notified immediately?”

Dr. Alver flinched, blanching significantly so that she became even more sallow than when she entered the room. She swallowed thickly while pressing her right hand into her chest over her own heart and holding her left hand out placating between herself and Luz. “I—Please, you have to understand that it was a mistake, I made a mistake, and there was only a twenty percent chance it would take, so I—I thought you would never know, so things turned out differently than either of us expected, obviously.”

“How could this happen?!” Luz stared at her doctor in appalled horror. She’s only been called back ten minutes previously by a mousy receptionist who stuttered out her full legal name, _Lucia Mariposa Graciela Espinosa Ortega,_ as if she were reluctant to read it. Now she realized why the woman would be hesitant around her. The whole office must know. _How could this be true? How could it happen?_ Her earlier question echoed around her mind. Despite the answer she’s been given, it still didn’t seem real.

“I’m so sorry, Luz—”

“You’re _sorry_? Do you even realize what you’ve done? What kind of toll this can take on someone? You should have your license revoked for something so careless!”

Dr. Alver clutched at her temple. “I know, I know, I probably deserve whatever you want to call me. I just, I…” She sighed, lowered her hands, and withdrew her prescription pad and a pen. She started furiously scribbling onto it. “Look, the most painless way to—to alleviate the issue would be for me to give you this. It’s a prescription for a pill you could take. Totally without hassle, and without the trauma of a more invasive procedure later. It’ll just...pass. Of course, you are under no obligation to consult with the father or the couple I meant to inseminate, but at the very least the father will have to be notified about his sample.”

Luz stared at her speechlessly. “You want me to have an abortion,” she realized tonelessly. She paused. “To cover up _your_ fuck up, your _malpractice_ , not based on genuine concern for my wellbeing or if I want it or not _._ ” She slid off of the exam table onto unsteady legs, suddenly unsure if walking right then would be such a good idea.

Dr. Alver blinked at her owlishly. “ _Do_ you want this?” She gestured vaguely at Luz’s midsection.

Luz threw her hands up in exasperation. “I don’t know! I need to process this!”

Dr. Alver extended her hand, and Luz realized she was offering her the script. She glared down at it, then back up at her once-trusted gynecologist, then back down at her get-out-of-jail-free card. Considering that she might actually want to, she snatched it out of the other, only slightly older woman’s hand reluctantly, spun on her heel, wrenched the door open and slipped out of exam room eight, agitatedly stuffing the paper into her bag as she made her retreat. She coldly ignored the way the doctor tried to put a hand on her shoulder as she left, or the contrite words she stammered at her back. She had to get out of there. _Now_.

When she got outside, she dug her phone out of her bag and dialed up a friend as she strode angrily down the street. It only rang three times before the person on the other end picked up. “Darcy? Hey, yeah, can you come meet me?”

Hearing the panicky undertone to her voice, Darcy’s concern immediately clicked into action. “Luz? What’s wrong?” In the background, Luz could hear another voice speaking, then hurried words from Darcy in response to them. She didn’t really stop to think about why she could hear them so clearly. Maybe she was on speaker phone and didn’t know it? The thought mortified her a bit, but she let it go. Who knew what sort of experiments they were running? Darcy might need both hands for work.

_What’s going on, Darcy?_

_I think my friend’s in trouble._

Luz didn’t think this was something she could just share over the phone. “Something happened, something huge, and I’m kind of freaking out about it. I need my friend. Could you just please come? How about the cafe where we met?”

“Let me talk to Jane.” There was a small noise like Darcy had laid the phone down, then the sound of her footsteps quietly padding away a few paces.

_I was right, Jane. Something’s wrong. I’ve never heard her voice like that. It seems like an emergency._

_Well in that case, I think you should go to her._

_Really? What about your newest project?_

_She needs help, doesn’t she? Besides, Bruce is in the next lab over tinkering on something with Tony. I can always ask them for help._

_Ok. Don’t have to tell me twice. Want anything while we’re out?_

_Sure. You know what I like. Just sure you take a guard with you._

_Not Anderson, he stares at my ass._

_Olamina, then, just go already!_

Luz waited patiently throughout their exchange, recalling that Darcy was working as a lab assistant under Dr. Jane Foster, her scientist friend and boss who currently worked and lived at Avengers Tower, formerly Stark Tower. All the Avengers had moved into it together after the battle that raged through New York, and the triple scientific threat of Jane Foster, Bruce Banner, and Tony Stark formed. Darcy remained silent for a few seconds, the sound of more diluted conversation filtering to Luz, all of it oddly clear enough to be distinguished. Darcy returned not long afterward. “Okay. I’m coming. Be there soon.”

“All right, see you then.” Luz hung up, slipping her phone into her pocket.

She made her way to their usual haunt, dodging around people expertly. When she got to her destination, a small cat-themed café called ‘Mugs and Mittens’, she wasted no time getting in and making sure the front door shut firmly behind her before she opened the inner one. She stepped off to the side of the entrance to breathe in the soft intermingling smells of coffee, tea, cocoa, and baked goods. Luz took another a moment just to soak that in first, allowing the familiar scents to soothe her and calm her now raging emotions. She glanced around the semi-dark, cozy interior, at the appropriately placed reading lamps, the squashy couches and armchairs huddled around low end tables interspersed with coffee tables, and the unusually comfortable booths off to one side. It was the latter she settled on, claiming a booth in the far corner.

It didn’t take nearly as long as she thought it might for Darcy to walk through the entrance, a pretty if low-profile woman slipping inside behind her. Her soft brown skin reminded Luz a bit of a fawn’s pelt, but the way she walked told her immediately that she had the exact opposite personality to one, gliding after Darcy with unassuming elegance. It made the hairs on the back of her neck stand on end. Surely no one should be that poised, that controlled. She somehow radiated the energy of a tamed cheetah. Her clothes were an act. She was a highly tuned predator wearing sheep’s clothing, attempting to hide in plain sight. How she knew Luz couldn’t say, but she knew it with a certainty, unease pooling low in her belly.

_Perhaps it was her developing maternal instincts warning her of danger?_ She shook the thought loose and stood to meet her friend, throwing her arms around her when she was within range. Her friend’s body was soft against her own, and she smelled faintly of the lavender hand lotion and citrusy haircare products she used. “Darcy,” she breathed into her shoulder, pulling back to look at her. “I have some...news.” Her eyes roamed casually to the woman standing just behind and to the side of Darcy, her body subtly placed between her and the nearest strangers. “Since when did you get a personal guard?”

Darcy winced. The strange woman answered Luz, her eyes coolly assessing the room as she made an offhand comment. “Since some unsavory individuals decided to kidnap Miss Lewis. She’s a civilian, but she’s well-connected to a few members of the team.” She refocused on Luz, looking her up and down in a way that stripped her bare to her bones, assessing her for both danger and weaknesses, she assumed. “My name is Lauren Oya Olamina. This is a good table.”

“You mean private,” Luz replied softly, “and advantageous—strategic.” 

The other woman, whose hair was braided down to her skull in tight cornrows, nodded, her eyes gleaming in both approval and suspicion. “Yes.”

Darcy waved her hand to catch both of their attention. Luz smirked, grabbing at her friend’s hand. “All right then, keep your shorts on, we can put our stuff down and go order our usual now.” She and Darcy left their coats folded nearly in the corner, then started off for their orders with Lauren following behind them like a menacing shadow. She glanced at Darcy. “By the way, what is Jane’s usual? I know she said you’d know to get her what she liked.”

Darcy faltered just as they got to the counter. “...Um, she likes caramel macchiatos with extra foam, whipped cream, and a little mocha and vanilla added, and she likes their club sandwich.”

Luz hummed thoughtfully, not seeing the look on Darcy’s face. “That’s odd. I pegged her as an Americano drinker.”

Lauren snorted. “That’s Rodgers—well, that, straight black coffee, and cold brew.”

“Natasha and Clint take it that way too,” Darcy added, hiding how unsettled she was. “They don’t like...what did they call it? ‘Frill and fancy’, I think.”

Lauren hmmed as they reached the counter.

Darcy ordered for herself first, asking Lauren if she’d order Jane’s when they were three quarters of the way done with their own. The woman declined with cool amusement, making Darcy whine. Luz ordered her usual: A mocha with coconut milk, and the treat she normally ordered once a week on Fridays, their triple fudge brownie. Darcy’s eyebrows shot up to her hairline upon hearing that. “Wow, the news must be something huge if you’re breaking your once a week rule. Is it leaning more toward really good or really bad?”

Luz grimaced as she paid for her order.

Darcy’s face pinched with the concern her voice had conveyed during their earlier phone call. “That bad, huh?” As soon as they were out of the way of the customers in line behind them, she slung a supportive arm around Luz’s shoulders, pulling her in for a side hug. Lauren stared at her in unabashed curiosity, probably wondering what could be so bad that she’d drag Darcy out of her work with Jane.

“Pretty bad. It’s a...medical thing. I’ll tell you when we’re back at the table.”

That only stoked the flames of Darcy’s worry, but sensing that Luz wanted privacy, she refrained from prodding for more information until the two of them slid into the booth, Lauren opting to take the side that would give her an unobstructed view of the inside of the cafe without making it obvious to the civilians what she was doing. She directed Darcy into the inside position on that side. Once they were situated, Luz stared into her mocha at the perfect foam art floating on top. She raised the mug carefully to her face and inhaled, aware it would be too hot to drink for some minutes. Darcy, eyes earnest, reached across the table, tapping it impatiently. “So? What’s going on with you? Are you sick? Are you…?” She couldn’t bring herself to finish the last inquiry, letting the rest of the words hang unspoken in the air. _Are you dying?_

Luz set her mug back on the table, laying her hand over Darcy’s and trying to ignore Lauren, who was somehow tracking her every move without looking at her at all. It was maddening. “I’m not dying from some horrible disease, Darce. I’m…I’m pregnant.”

Darcy’s eyes widened like saucers. She ducked her head in disbelief. “Holy shit. You’re _what?!”_

Luz huffed. “Keep it down. And I said I’m pregnant, okay?”

Darcy dropped her voice. “My bad, but, like, _how_? I mean, you’re not even seeing anyone right now, are you, let alone someone who can, _you know_?” ‘Who can knock you up’ was the heavily implied ending.

Luz made a tired sound and pulled her hands away to drag her palms down her face. “No,” she gave a muffled reply, “I’m not. My doctor somehow accidentally inseminated me.”

Darcy, who somehow had a mouth made of stronger stuff and so was taking a small sip of her own drink, nearly spit her latte back into her cup, which she set down abruptly. She grabbed the closest one of Luz’s hands. “You don’t think you buried the lead a bit there, Luz? That’s insane!” She paused thoughtfully, taking another piping hot sip straight off the top without so much as a single cursory blow. “You could sue. You _should_ sue. In fact, you should come back to the Tower with me so we can talk to Pepper. I think she’d be sympathetic and she could find you a damn good lawyer—”

Luz interrupted her. “Pepper Potts? _The_ Pepper Potts?”

Darcy rolled her eyes. “Which other one do you know of that I know? Yes, _that_ Pepper Potts. Hashem knows she and Tony can afford it.” A frown tugged at her lips as she leaned forward. “Do you even know if you want to keep it?”

Luz slumped a bit. “I—I don’t know. I’m not sure. Maybe. Probably. Not for any sort of ideological reasons—and don’t get me wrong, I definitely believe in bodily autonomy and letting the person decide this sort of thing. For me, personally, though…I mean, I can technically afford it, and I’ve always wanted a baby. I was actually scared I wouldn’t have the opportunity to have one, considering how rough my dating life has been.” She sighed. “Before, though, there was always a seventy-five percent chance that it would be through adoption, not—” she gestured at her stomach “—not this.”

Darcy nodded thoughtfully, then her eyes brightened and she practically lit up. “Whether you decide to discuss a lawsuit with Pepper or not, I’m sure they could find something low-key for you to do. I don’t think Bruce or Tony would mind another lab assistant.”

Luz’s forehead knotted with confusion as she carefully balanced her mug in one hand, blowing on her mocha to cool it faster. “Why would they be finding something for me to do? I like my job, and the pay is pretty decent.”

Darcy gently swayed their hands back and forth. “Do you really think you’re going to want anything other than a low-exertion job when you’re six months pregnant and ready for the delivery day to take away your misery? Besides, you could work at your own pace—Jane and Bruce are laid back anyway, if you didn’t mind being a lab assistant, although Tony’s an ass; you could move in with me—I have an apartment there, plus I know how much your rent takes out of your paycheck, and if you keep this pregnancy to term you’re not going to have much left over; and there are people who can take care of you.” Darcy’s excitement bubbled up to the surface. This wasn’t the first time she had asked Luz to move in with her and be her roommate. Outside of Jane and the various Avengers, she didn’t have friends close by these days, and she didn’t feel as close to any of them—outside of Jane, who was also her boss—as she did to Luz.

Luz’s nose wrinkled. “You mean servants.”

“No. Well, kind of. Mostly I meant company employees who work in childcare and housekeeping. Fully vetted ones who are paid _very well_ for their loyalty and what they do. Come on, think about it. You know it’s tempting.”

Luz sighed. “I genuinely like teaching my classes, but the offer is a _little_ tempting, although I wouldn’t mind picking up teaching again after I _dar la luz_. Give me a little bit to think about things.”

Darcy nodded, going back to her own drink. Just like that, she allowed Luz silence and space. That was the good thing about Darcy—she came off as loud and brash, but she knew how to exist in silence with someone when they needed it, and it made Luz even more fond of her.

Luz’s mind went immediately to their history together, and what she’d learned about Darcy since they became friends over the past six months. They’d become fast friends almost as soon as they met, meshing well together. Darcy had completed her last semester at Culver remotely to continue working with Jane. After she graduated, she stayed on with Jane full-time as a lab assistant while Jane worked at different S.H.I.E.L.D facilities. Somehow Jane finagled it so that Darcy ended up receiving all the same benefits as her slightly older friend. Months of relative peace passed, besides Jane mooning after an absent Thor and convincing Darcy to try to build a device that would make wormholes. Then the Chitauri invasion happened, shattering the routine Darcy and Jane fell into so easily. Thor had returned to help protect humanity, while they’d been shuttled off to Norway during the battle. The cafe where Darcy and Luz met opened soon afterward.

Luz, meanwhile, had just recently finished her own degree in exercise and sport science, although she aspired to one day get a graduate degree in physical therapy. She’d scored her job as a fitness instructor at Bodhi Academy, which had somehow miraculously remained standing during the invasion. The cafe happened to be close to both Avengers Tower and the facilities where Luz taught her classes. Darcy often went to ‘Mugs and Mittens’ for lunch and on coffee and tea runs for the team. Luz, too, took lunch there. The two met during a busy day when the only seats available were side-by-side. They happened to be reading the same book, and ended up in deep conversation about it. They continued sitting together after that, trading or recommending books, discussing the latest movies and video games, and relating the shenanigans of their coworkers.

Eventually they met up in settings outside of the coffee shop as their friendship built up more and more, going to the park, theatres, restaurants, or shops together. Darcy had attended a few of her classes and crashed at her place, but Luz had been reluctant to venture into Avengers Tower despite being invited to stay, either temporarily or permanently, multiple times. Now her friend was asking her to live there after she received some of the biggest news of her life. It _would_ make her life easier, baby or no baby, although she was leaning more toward deciding _baby_. She might not have expected the pregnancy, and she didn’t have any religious justifications not to terminate it after drifting away from her family’s strict beliefs, but she’d always wanted to be a mother someday. She wanted the opportunity to be the mother hers couldn’t be, to be gentle and kind and empathetic, to make someone’s childhood happier than her own distant, dreary one full of resentment and tears. She nibbled at her bottom lip.

Across town, as she considered her options, Dr. Alver dealt with a situation of her own.

XXX

_Fuck_. That could have gone better. Dr. Melinda Alver slumped against the wall of exam room eight. The staff for the practice was small, and thankfully none of them were gossips, or else she would be so boned if this news got out at all, let alone before any damage control. That, or they each realized that they could be shut down entirely and out of work should anyone in the press catch wind of this—particularly before they could tell the famous, well-beloved, and decorated Captain Steve Rogers that one of his samples had been used, let alone that it had been obtained illicitly. And the couple that paid for it, that asked her to hold it under an alias of their choosing, _they_ wouldn’t be pleased either. The United States government had kept samples from Rogers after administering the super-soldier serum to him, with none available to the public. None, that is, until a state senator and his wife couldn’t conceive, until they’d snuck out a small sample and paid her small clinic handsomely, trusting them to be discreet and relying on their need for the generous compensation for completing the deed. Now she not only had that couple to inform, but Captain America as well. _Fucking fantastic._

She allowed her head to thump backward into the sturdy white surface behind her. This would ruin her. If word ever got out she would have her license suspended, perhaps permanently. She might lose her business, her livelihood She might anyway, once the government or Rogers knew. She’d become a pariah not just in the medical community, but all of the Americas, perhaps internationally. She’d be the laughingstock, the moron who misplaced the sperm of Captain America—war hero, superhero, savior of New York, current Avenger, keeper of world peace and generally all-around all right guy. She might be imprisoned, exiled, even killed if some zealots decided to hunt her down. Hell, _he_ might hunt her down for the insemination!

What would he say? How would he react? How would his team react? It didn’t reassure her that on top of the adoration he received and the status he had that one of his friends was the just-as-famous playboy billionaire philanthropist, Tony Stark, aka Iron Man. On top of the good Captain himself and his team of mutants, assassins, and aliens, the United States government might have a bone to pick with her. Not to mention that, if she were honest with herself, Luz was right, she’d tried to cover up her worst mistake with the stroke of a single pen and two little pills. The outrage that would garner from both ends of the political spectrum would surely end her career even if the scandal of the insemination of Luz didn’t. _Bloody brilliant._

She felt a stress migraine coming on, pressure building just behind her eyes and nausea pooling in her stomach. She appreciated the cold of the wall then, pressing into it for relief until someone knocked on the door and cleared their throat. She opened her eyes to find Barbara Hooks, her receptionist giving her own panic-stricken expression, her eyes wide. Her terrified, awkward words tumbled out in a stutter. “T-T-There’s, ah, there’s s-someone here t-to s-see you.”

She backed out of the room as soundlessly as she’d approached. Melinda sighed, squaring her shoulders with grim determination. She pushed herself away from the wall and tried not to look like she’d just dropped the ball on one of the most high-stakes moments of her life. It ended up a fruitless endeavor when, seconds later, a woman dressed smartly in navy-hued military-like garb entered, her blue eyes sharp, her dark brown hair pulled back in a severe bun. Melinda’s composure slipped from her face. “Who are you?”

The woman stepped firmly into the room, closing the door quietly. Somehow it still rang with finality, and Melinda gulped nervously. “I’m Agent Maria Hill. You’re Dr. Melinda Alver. According to our intelligence, you were entrusted with a contraband sample spirited away from under the control and supervision of the United States government. We’d like it back.” _Agent? Was she FBI, maybe even CIA?_ She stood fluidly at ease, just within striking distance. “You can cooperate by turning it over to our organization quietly. We’ll contact the thieves ourselves.”

Melinda shook her head furiously. “No, no, no, I c-can’t. I can’t.”

Agent Hill’s gaze hardened. “We know that Senator Hillcrest’s wife didn’t conceive from your last session, but we also know there was enough of the sample for two inseminations. That means that there’s still some viable sample left.”

“No, no, no, that’s not it. It’s that, well I,” Melinda shrunk in on herself. “The Senator’s wife didn’t conceive because I—because I inseminated her with saline water. I—I panicked, I didn’t know what else to do, I—”

Agent Hill stepped closer to her until they were almost nose-to-nose. “You have the entire quantity then? _Where_ _is the sample?_ ”

The agent hovered so close to her, in fact, that Hill came across as even more intimidating. Melinda flinched, her face turning away in shame, her nails digging into her palms so hard she thought she might make herself bleed. Her silence did not please Hill, who grasped her shoulder firmly in a no-nonsense grip. “Did you sell the sample, Dr. Alver?”

Melinda shook her head furiously, lips pressed tightly together as she flushed. She could practically feel Hill’s frustration mounting. “Did you destroy it?” She grew redder and shook her head again. Hill tried another track, her voice going dangerously low. “Did you inseminate yourself?”

Melinda’s gaze snapped to hers, horrified and stricken. “No! I would never! That’s completely unethical!”

That apparently amused Hill, who relaxed her hold on her slightly. “More unethical than taking an off-the-books cash payment to inseminate someone with stolen supersoldier sperm?”

Melinda looked at her miserably. “I was distracted and accidentally inseminated one of my patients.”

This was clearly not what the agent was expecting. She hissed, “You did _what?”_

Melinda wondered if Agent Hill would actually hit her, then she wondered how hard it might be. Despite the shock clearly evident on the Agent’s face, she didn’t reach out to harm Melinda. Only a moment of lost poise passed before she pulled herself together into an aloof facade. Melinda shivered at the sudden shift. “I’m going to need the name of that patient.”

Melinda relaxed out of her stance of bracing for impact. “I’ll get you her chart.” She scurried over to where a manila folder still lay on the counter, snatching it up and scurrying back, then handing it over to Agent Hill. “By the way,” she hedged as Hill lifted the edge of the folder, easing toward the examination table to try and put some distance—and furniture—between her and what she knew was an agent who was already far too unhappy with her than would likely be good for her health, “the patient—Espinosa-Ortega, she’s an interdisciplinary instructor, teaches pilates, yoga, barre, and something else, I forget what.” Hill only spared her a cursory glance as she flipped the folder open. “The insemination—it was successful,” Melinda blurted, rushing to finish her sentence as she saw Hill’s hand clench on the file folder containing Espinosa-Ortega’s chart. “She’s pregnant. It only just took, but she’s carrying what will be Captain Roger’s child, if she allows it to develop to term and delivers.”

It was interesting to watch a secret agent drain of color. _So this is what it’s like to be on the other side of that reaction_ , she thought idly, not noticing Agent Hill’s departure until the door banged into the wall, Hill evidently calling someone. “It’s Hill. We have a problem on our hands. I’ll tell you more when I get back.”

Melinda looked down at her hands as Agent Hill’s voice faded. What had she _done_?


	2. Chapter Two

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Agent Hill takes the information to Fury and the Avengers, and Luz meets them.

II

Fury, Hill, and the rest of the team—including Thor, who someone had somehow convinced to part from his brother, a brother who was currently on alien house arrest under their roof, during their family time for more than five minutes—crowded around the room. Even Jane had a place at the table, which she took advantage of to sit as close to Thor as possible. It was obvious to everyone that their hands were clasped under the table, though no one commented on it. Steve sat down heavily, having gotten what now counted as some of the most shocking news of his life. “I thought all of those had been destroyed.”

Natasha, still leaning gracefully against the far wall like a panther ready to pounce at the slightest movement, scoffed indelicately. “Obviously someone lied to you, Rogers.”

Tony had to inject his usual humor into the conversation. “They really froze some of your swimmers, Cap? They made mini Cap-sicles.”

Pepper was less than impressed. “Really, Tony? We’re going with that?”

“What, I’m not allowed to say anything? What’s the fun in that?”

“The fun of being an adult.”

“Ouch,” Clint muttered.

Thor glanced around in mild confusion and said to no one in particular, “Is this not joyous news?”

“My concern,” Bruce spoke up over Tony’s antics, “is the health of the mother. This is an entirely new thing. We’ve never had to deal with a child in utero that’s been exposed to the serum. Biologically speaking, we don’t know what sort of immediate or long term side-effects this woman might suffer if she carries to term. We don’t know what such a child does to a human body.”

Thor turned to him. “You believe that she may come to some harm?”

At the same time, Steve also turned to Bruce, his jaw clenching. “You’re saying that if she continues with this, it could kill her.”

Bruce tipped his head to him, right hand held out in a ‘well’ gesture, palm facing upward. “Kill her, overwhelm her immune system or internal organs, permanently disable her. Termination _might_ be the best option for her. If she doesn’t want to go that route, though, we have to consider the consequences.”

Steve felt mildly offended. “Consider the consequences? Banner, do I look like the type of person to let an innocent woman die or to leave my child an orphan?”

“No, you have far too much honor for that,” Thor reassured him.

“They wouldn’t be. We can’t have a super-powered child running around with no supervision,” Fury interjected.

Natasha crossed her arms over her chest. “Let’s not get too hasty, gentlemen. After all, a normal pregnancy could result in health risks or death. That doesn’t mean she should terminate or that she’ll have any abnormalities.”

“But we can’t pretend that there’s no chance at all,” Bruce replied.

Clint shrugged. “Nat’s right, there’s always risk. It’s her choice, whoever she is.”

Tony clapped, raising his voice. “JARVIS, bring up the file.”

The familiar disembodied voice of the AI drifted through the room. “Certainly, sir. Sending it to you now.”

A large holographic screen appeared on the tabletop, with a copy of the file going to each seated person. A picture of a young, reasonably attractive, copper-skinned woman popped up on the screen. Her thick black hair hung down in long, rope-like French braids. Steve read _her_ name—the name of the woman who might or might not be the mother of his child—aloud. “Lucia Mariposa Graciela Espinosa-Ortega. She apparently prefers to go by Luz. She just turned twenty-one three weeks ago. Her parents are Consuela María-Teresa Ortega Villanueva and Ernesto Juan-Antonio Espinosa Martínez.”

Hill went over the next portion of her file to the room at large. “She’s a third generation U.S. American. Her grandparents are from two different parts of Mexico, and her parents were born here in the States. She’s a citizen with no priors, not even a parking ticket, and she had an excellent academic record. She’s also a local that got a degree in Exercise and Sport Science and now works at Bodhi Academy. It’s not far from here.”

Jane, who had been staring fixedly at the image of the young woman, gasped suddenly, clutching at Thor’s arm. “I—I know this woman,” she explained somewhat sheepishly when all eyes fixed on her faster than a fox snapping up a rabbit. “This is Darcy’s friend Luz. They met at some cafe nearby, the one where she goes to get our drinks in the mornings and at lunch.” She pulled at a loose thread on the sleeve of her lab coat as she continued. “They’re at the cafe right now. She called Darcy earlier to go meet her there. According to Darcy, she sounded pretty shaken up about something. Darcy was convinced it was an emergency.”

One could hear a pin drop in the silence that followed that news.

Thor and Steve stood at the same time, almost speaking over each other.

“We must go to her,” Thor declared.

“You need to take us there, Foster,” Steve pressed.

Jane glanced between them. “Why don’t I just text Darcy to try to convince her to come here?”

“Retrieving her ourselves won’t be necessary,” Fury announced, his head coming up from a hushed conversation with Hill. “Agent Hill and I discussed it and think it would be best if the operative serving as Miss Lewis’ protection detail today, in conjunction with a few dispatched covert agents, escorted them both back here rather than cause a scene and tip our hand by having Captain America and the god of Thunder burst into a public cafe looking explicitly for the mother of Roger’s unborn child.”

“It’s a headline waiting to happen,” Hill told them. “Agent Olamina is already in place. Sending her covert backup would be safer than having her protect two assets alone, and having Miss Espinosa-Ortega brought here avoids outing you, Captain.”

Steve sat down without argument, not totally satisfied but not willing to argue with a perfectly reasonable request. Thor followed suit. “All right,” Steve conceded, “When?”

“They’ve already been dispatched,” Hill assured him. “We sent Price, Graves, Heap, Stanley, and Abbott.”

Fury looked at each Avenger in turn from his one visible eye. “I assure you that they are all loyal and know not to ask questions when something is above their clearance level.”

“They also have a high enough rank to be trusted to be competent,” Clint noted.

“And they’re all low enough in rank to not draw unwanted attention or suspicion from anyone watching,” Natasha assessed.

“You know, it’s still creepy when you two finish each other’s train of thought like that,” Tony commented.

Clint and Natasha exchanged one of the looks that meant they were communicating without saying a word, then both shrugged.

Bruce steepled his hands on top of the table. “Well, as enlightening as the last five minutes have been, I’m still worried about how her body will hold up to carrying an enhanced human. I’d like to run some diagnostic tests when they bring her in, just to see how her body’s already taking it.”

Fury nodded in acknowledgment. “Do it. Take Stark with you. There’s value in knowing how an enhanced human develops in utero.”

“Anything else?” Hill asked the room at large. When no one said anything, she and Fury stood. “Dismissed.”

She and Fury exited the room, leaving the team—and Jane—alone.

Bruce rose with a sigh. “Come on, Stark, let’s go.”

Jane was the next to stand. “I’m going with you.”

“I thought you were an astrophysicist,” Stark said curiously, not quite as a question.

“I am, but I have to do something,” Jane muttered.

Bruce shrugged. “I don’t see any harm in it.”

She smiled thinly at him as she tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. “Thanks.”

Tony rolled his eyes and strolled to the door, throwing a weak protest over his shoulder. “Oh come on, you’ll let anyone into your lab.”

“I know. I let _you_ into it,” Bruce retorted as he followed him.

As they squabbled at the door, she walked over to Thor and leaned down to press a quick kiss to his lips, then joined the two scientists.

Steve leaned his elbows onto the table and cradled his head in his hands. “I might be a father.”

A large, heavy hand descended on his shoulder in a gesture of support. Looking to the side, he saw Thor smiling encouragingly at him. “I still say that is wonderful news.”

Steve let his hands drop away, lifting his head to acknowledge the alien trying to comfort him. “I guess that’s one way to put it.”

“I’m just wondering how you two work this out between you.” Clint dropped into the seat on Steve’s other side. Natasha glided closer but stayed on her feet as she had throughout the meeting. “I mean, assuming she both keeps the pregnancy and survives it, how would you handle custody? What about finances? Would you set up child support? How involved do you plan to be?”

Steve hadn’t even thought of that. “She could live here,” he answered slowly, not sure if he wanted it but unwilling to discount an option that would allow him so much time and proximity to his child, even if it meant a stranger lived in their midst. Surely she couldn’t be so bad if she were friends with Darcy? Darcy was spunky, kind, a bit of a smartass. She wouldn’t be friends with someone _too_ awful. “She already knows Darcy, and she’d have everything provided for them.”

Natasha’s lips twitched in amusement. “Well, when you put it like that,” she said in what could only be a teasing tone. “What woman could resist?” She grew serious. “She may have a life she’s not willing to leave, Rogers. She has a job, a place of her own. What about that, what about her independence?”

Steve ran a hand through his short hair. “I don’t know what you want me to say, Romanov. I would never take away someone’s autonomy. If she doesn’t want to stay here or accept my help, she doesn’t have to, I mean, hell, she may decide to terminate, but is it so wrong of me to want to be as close to my child as possible? To be able to spend time with them when we’re not running missions? To make sure my child has every need met?”

It was Thor who answered. “No. It is admirable to want to take care of your own child or to be close to them.”

“It’s as much about how you do it as what you do,” Clint offered. “She’s saying that you don’t want to come off as overbearing.”

Natasha inclined her head. “Exactly. You have to be prepared in the event that she doesn’t want anything to do with you. The lives we live…aren't _for_ everyone. That being said, we could probably find a job for her around here, if she wants to keep the pregnancy and her issues stem purely from wanting to maintain her independence.”

“Maybe she could share Darcy’s duties,” Clint mused, “or work with Miss Potts. She needs an assistant, doesn’t she?”

Natasha hummed. “She does. So do Stark and Banner. But we could also just hire her to do for Stark’s employees what she already does at that fitness facility.”

Steve stood abruptly. “Those are all great ideas, but I’ve got to run. I think I’m gonna hit the gym again.”

Natasha and Clint met each other’s eyes before they looked at him. He could see what Stark meant about the eeriness of their silent communication. It wasn’t like they were speaking by signing. In fact, if he didn’t know better himself, he’d think it was like some sort of telepathy.

Natasha’s left eyebrow rose. “And miss seeing her?” There was a playful edge to her voice.

Clint grunted in amusement. “Leave him alone, Nat. I think he’s a little overwhelmed.”

“Mm. I’m sure he is.”

With one last look at Steve, she moved quietly to the door. Clint saluted him and easily matched her steps. Soon, it was just Thor and Steve. Thor beamed warmly at him, patting his shoulder. “Do not worry, I am sure all will be well. I think you simply need to speak with Lady Espinosa Ortega. She knows what she desires.”

Steve chuckled, reassured by Thor’s steady presence and ready support. “I appreciate that.” He stood with a sigh. “It was nice talking to you about this.”

Thor got to his feet, Mjolnir held loosely in by his fingertips. “Of course. You are my comrade and friend.”

They left the room together, but parted ways as Thor went to hunt down Loki and Steve walked pensively to the in-house gym, trying not to dwell on the fact that Espinosa-Ortega—no, _Luz_ , Foster had said—really might want nothing to do with him.

XXX

They’d been at the cafe for less than an hour when suddenly Lauren’s back went ramrod straight. Darcy and Luz had been talking about the most recent TV show they started together when it happened. Darcy didn’t seem the least bit fazed, but Luz looked at her curiously. “Is she okay?”

Darcy glanced at her so-far stoic companion. “Yeah. Sounds like she just got some messages over the comms system.”

In response to whatever she heard on the other end, Lauren murmured, “Yes ma’am.” Her eyes drifted onto Luz. “Affirmative. Miss Lewis and I are still at the same location, and she’s still with us.”

Luz very quickly realized that Lauren and whoever she could hear over the communications device were discussing her. Her cheeks heated as she felt a vague sense of embarrassment. _What was going on here?_

“Understood. We’ll wait here for the others.”

Luz felt faintly alarmed, worried something had happened. Lauren’s tense body relaxed marginally, letting her gaze wander around the cafe once more. Very quietly, she started speaking to them. “A small unit of agents has been sent to retrieve us.” Her eyes settled back onto Luz. “All of us. Your presence has been requested, Miss Espinosa-Ortega.”

Luz could only stare at her, frozen. “My presence…? Why?”

“It’s probably Jane,” Darcy reasoned. “She knows how upset you were and how worried I was.”

Luz still felt disquieted, but finished the rest of her mocha and brownie in silence. Darcy, too, seemed to have a shift in mood as she finished her latte and fruit tart. Luz gathered their empty plates and mugs to take over to the tray of dirty dishes heading into the back while Darcy placed Jane’s order. Luz made her way over to stand next to Darcy. She tried to break through the tension she now felt. “Should I be worried?” She tried keeping her tone light, but obvious worry still laced her words.

Darcy gave her a thin smile of reassurance. She leaned in close and murmured right next to Luz’s ear. “Doubt it. They probably just want to make sure there’s enough protection. It’s harder for anyone to cover two targets with no backup.”

Luz bit her lip. “I guess so. I just...I have a feeling something else is going on here.”

Darcy nudged her lightly with her shoulder. “Don’t worry so much. Jane is cool.”

Luz found a fond smile tugging at her lips despite herself. She nudged her back then threw her left arm around Darcy’s shoulders, her left side flush to Darcy’s right. “I kind of love you, do you know that?”

Darcy negotiated her right arm around Luz’s shoulders. “I kind of love you, too, Luzy.” Even knowing what Darcy was trying to do, it still sounded like Lucy to Luz’s ears. They shared a laugh, but let each other go when Darcy’s order for Jane was called. She picked it up and the two of them went back to the table to wait with Lauren.

Twenty minutes later, the front door opened and five more individuals glided into the shop. Like Lauren, they flowed across the room with some understated grace despite walking normally for all intents and purposes. Every step, no matter how casual, was actually measured. Their neutral expressions and casually wandering eyes sweeping over the room in quick assessment set Luz on edge. If Lauren alone made the hairs on the back of her neck stand on end, their movements and demeanor instantly triggered some instinct in Luz that let her know they were dangerous. It got to the point that she had to make an effort to stay calm and seated, especially when they drew level to the table where she sat with Darcy and Lauren. She held herself still and eyed Lauren to see the woman’s reaction. To her immense relief, she seemed to be familiar with them all. 

Lauren inclined her head so subtly that it would be easy to miss if someone wasn’t paying direct and targeted attention to her. Luz’s attention was drawn to Lauren’s hands, which signed at the others in rapid succession. Her brow scrunched in confusion, because it didn’t look like ASL, PSE, or SEE, the most logical options for their geographic location. The shortest member of the group, with thick black curls, a pointed nose and brown eyes, sighed back. It all passed in under a minute, and then Lauren was gesturing at Luz. “Trish, this is Darcy’s friend Luz,” she murmured, somehow without moving her lips at all and, Luz suspected, only for her and Darcy’s benefit. “She’ll be visiting Darcy at the office today.”

Luz flashed a polite smile. “How do you do?”

Trish returned an equally polite smile, though her face remained all business. “Just fine. Pleasure to meet you. Shall we be going, then?”

In anyone else, her perusal of their surroundings would look nervous, but she managed to look bored and uninterested. Luz could read it as mostly an act, since she could tell that Trish hadn’t missed anything that happened in the last five minutes. Luz grabbed her bag and slid out of the booth. She took Darcy’s hand when her friend made it into her feet too, then looked between her and her original companion. As soon as they stepped away from the table, without making it obvious to the untrained eye, they managed to surround the two friends so that they were inside of the group of six guards as they moved through the room, out of the door and onto the street. They walked a few yards until they came to an empty side street where a single large black SUV waited.

A tall, lanky, and sandy-haired male agent took the wheel, while a shorter, darker, blond male agent sat in the passenger seat. Darcy and Luz were ushered into the back, while the other agents climbed aboard. Once the doors shut and locked and the wheels started rolling, they all seemed to collectively relax. The short agent Lauren spoke to stared at Luz even more curiously than Lauren had. “I’m Trish Price,” she told her. She pointed to a grim-looking brunette woman. “That’s Charlotte Graves.” Next she pointed to the only bald member of the group, a male agent. “Simon Heap.” She introduced the two men in front last as “Jacob Stanley” and “Henry Abbott”, respectively. “We were ordered to escort you and Miss Lewis to the tower Stark remodeled for the Avengers.”

Luz could tell that the woman wanted to know why she was so important. Even if she couldn’t or wouldn’t ask, even if she’d been ordered not to, she still felt that burning desire to _know._ She just couldn’t pursue the impulse to learn more without directly disregarding orders. Or at least, that’s what Luz gathered. Trish didn’t say anything at all. In fact, none of the agents pushed for more information, though every once in a while she could see their longing to do so in their eyes. Unfortunately for them, she had about as much idea as they did, though it seemed all of them doubted the story that this was a simple visit to the office. For all she knew, there were just _that many_ kidnapping attempts against Darcy, and with her accompanying her friend, one guard wouldn’t be enough. But surely one or two guards each would suffice, perhaps even three total for the two of them. They didn’t really need _six_ total guards, did they? Maybe Darcy was dating one of the team members—but that couldn’t be the reason for all of this, could it? After all, they’d said that Luz’s presence had been requested. What was that about?

Luz shook her head to clear away all of her musings. There were a thousand questions she wanted to ask, but knew that the curious guards wouldn’t be able to answer any of them, and so stayed silent. The ride lasted less than five minutes anyway. Soon the awkward weight of curiosity didn’t matter and they were pulling past the security gates and into an enclosed private parking deck. The group disembarked, three agents fanning out and securing the perimeter before ushering out a bemused Darcy and increasingly agitated Luz. The agents all closed ranks again as they hurried them across the deck and into the building.

Trish swiped her access card to open the elevator, then entered a code that made a compartment inside slide open. She placed her palm onto some sort of scanning panel, which caused a cheerful, generic robotic voice to welcome her. As the group crowded into the elevator and the doors closed, another voice—this one with a pleasant, vaguely British accent—spoke over the speakers, sounding far more natural than the first. “I’ve alerted Mr. Stark and the others to your arrival, agents.”

Darcy perked up instantly. “Hey, JARVIS.”

“Good morning, Miss Lewis.”

“Has Tony been behaving while I was out?”

JARVIS chuckled. “I don’t think he knows how to behave, Miss Lewis.”

Darcy lost her shit. “You’ve got that fucking right. Even the AI knows Tony doesn’t know how to act like an adult with his shit together half of the time.”

Luz looked at Darcy with interest. “An AI, huh?”

Darcy glanced up from checking her phone. “Yeah. Tony created him. He’s great.” She slid her phone back into her pocket. “I was just letting Jane know we were here.”

“Already taken care of, Miss Lewis, and just so you know, Dr. Foster, Mr. Stark, and Dr. Banner would like to speak with your friend personally.”

Darcy nudged Luz with her elbow. “See? Nothing to worry about. Jane just wanted to meet you.”

“Actually, Miss Lewis,” JARVIS interjected apologetically, “there are a few others who would like to meet your friend as well. In fact, almost everyone is currently in the common area awaiting your arrival.”

Luz shifted uncomfortably. “The, ah, the common area where the—where the team stays?”

“Quite right, Miss Espinosa-Ortega.” She didn't want to dwell on the implications of the AI referring to her by name. They’d probably run eight background checks on her by the time they’d gotten in the van.

“So the team is waiting...for us...in the common.”

“Yes,” JARVIS relied cheerily.

Luz slumped against Darcy. “ _Coño_.”

Her friend patted her shoulder consolingly “Oh, come on, it won’t be that bad. They’re all really nice. Well…” she winced. “There’s this one person who’s not quite part of the team—but he kind of is! —and, uh, he can be kind of an asshole, but, like, you probably won’t even run into each other—”

“We’ve reached the top,” JARVIS announced pleasantly as the elevator dinged and the door opened to reveal a nondescript hallway.

Luz reluctantly followed the others out of the elevator, her hand slipping into Darcy’s for comfort. She squeezed her friend’s hand to an almost uncomfortable level, shooting her a nervous look. Darcy gave her a reassuring one in return, which helped calm her nerves somewhat. They passed through a series of long, winding hallways, doors interspersed at regular intervals. Most of them were closed, though a few, like the ones leading into an empty conference room and a training room, respectively, were open. Luz felt her heart rate increase, her pulse pounding in her ear. When they finally stopped in front of a set of steel doors and JARVIS once more spoke to them, Luz had to force herself to try to calm it down and keep from hyperventilating. “They’re just beyond these doors.”

Luz took a last fortifying breath as the doors opened and the agents led them into the room.

It was...not what she was expecting. The spacious common room looked totally ordinary, barring the advanced tech interspersed throughout the room and the very obvious gaggle of superheroes and other well-known individuals standing tensely together, all looking expectantly at them—at _her_ , Luz realized belatedly. Part of her wanted to shrink back behind Darcy and all of the guards under their intense scrutiny, although another part of her wanted her to firmly stand her ground. Yet another part, the one informing both of those impulses, was warning her of the danger in the room. Her eyes darted around uncertainly, catching sight of a short hall that led to a kitchen area, and a much longer one that seemed to lead to dorms.

Trish—Agent Price—stepped forward to give a brief report to a tall bald black man wearing a long black trench-coat and an eyepatch, and a shorter dark-haired woman wearing the same uniform as their escort. After Agent Price finished, she, along with the agents surrounding Luz and Darcy, broke formation and exited the room without another word. 

At that moment, Luz decided not to cower embarrassingly in front of the bloody _Avengers_ , straightened her spine and lifted her head up high. After all, she had nothing to be ashamed or afraid of when it concerned them. She hadn’t done anything wrong. They probably just felt protective over Darcy since she was a civilian friend who was infinitely more fragile than any of them. The imposing man stepped forward, hands crossed behind his back, with the severe-looking woman at his side, her height not working to soften her demeanor at all. The man spoke first, introducing himself and the woman beside him. “I’m Director Nick Fury, and this is Agent Maria Hill. Now, as I understand it, you’re already acquainted with Miss Lewis?”

Luz kept her voice firm. “Yes.”

Agent Hill spoke next. “We’re sorry to bring you here like this unannounced, Miss Espinosa-Ortega, but the matter was rather urgent.”

Fury turned sideways, gesturing at the nearest empty seat. “We have some information that might be of some...interest to you. Perhaps it’s best if you sit down?”

Luz glanced between the man, the seat he indicated, and Darcy, then complied with his suggestion, tugging her friend over with her. “All right, what’s going on here?” As she sat, she straightened out the fabric of her sundress. At her side, Darcy gave the people that had tentatively become her friends a confused expression. Steve—Captain Rogers, aka Captain America—and Thor were noticeably missing, though Jane Foster, the renowned astrophysicist, was present, completing the trio of scientists, as were the assassin duo and Pepper Potts. None of them said anything, instead shifting to face the two of them. Even for Darcy the display felt a little intimidating.

Hill cleared her throat. “As I understand it, earlier today you visited the practice of Dr. Melinda Alver?”

Luz immediately felt her face flush. She hesitated to answer, ducking her head and focusing intently on smoothing her fingers over the hem of her dress repeatedly. “I, ah…yes. I had gotten some concerning test results at the emergency room recently.”

“Could you elaborate, Miss Espinosa-Ortega? I promise this is going somewhere, just bear with me, and don’t feel like you have to spare any details.”

That didn’t make this feel like an interrogation. Not at all. Luz groaned internally. No use hesitating now. “After experiencing heavy nausea, I fainted on the bus. They called in paramedics and had them take me to Princeton–Plainsboro Teaching Hospital, since it was the closest. They—they ran some tests on me and…” Luz stopped, swallowing hard. Darcy’s arm came up to wrap around her shoulders.

“I see,” Agent Hills said, neutrally but not unkindly. “The tests came back positive for pregnancy hormones, correct?”

Luz slowly looked up at her. “Yes. I thought it had to be a mistake, or maybe that I had—you know, had cancer, but…” she trailed off for the second time.

Agent Hill prompted her again gently. “That wasn’t the case, was it?”

Luz sighed. “No, it wasn’t. It turns out Dr. Alver made a mistake.” Her hands clenched on the hem of her dress, clenched so hard that they shook and the fabric whined, something that didn’t go unnoticed by anyone in the room. “She said she accidentally inseminated me with a sample meant for one of her clients. I mean how does someone _do_ that? How do you fuck up that monumentally and accidentally inseminate someone? I mean _,_ hell, I only went in for my first gynecological checkup! _Chingada madre_! She should be fucking _sued,_ she should lose her license! She should—” Luz broke off when a sharp ripping sound rent the air. She glanced down in confusion to see that part of the skirt of her dress lay in tatters in her still-clenched hand. She abruptly uncurled her fingers from around the ruined fabric, her eyebrows knitting together in bewilderment. “Wha—? I didn’t even grip it that hard. How could I…?”

Unbeknownst to her, the team of heroes, her captive audience, were trading loaded glances with each other, all of them conveying varying emotions. The group currently consisting of one business woman, three scientists, two assassins, and two SHIELD agents leaned forward with interest.

Director Fury, who’d seemed content to let Hill run her ‘interrogation’, rejoined the conversation then. “As I mentioned earlier, Miss Espinosa-Ortega, some information came to light that we think would be of interest to you. You see, Agent Hill here _also_ visited Dr. Melinda Alver’s clinic earlier today, in fact not long after you did. Based on a bit of intelligence we received recently, we had reason to believe that a sample originating from an enhanced individual had been stolen from the United States government by certain parties who wanted to use it for their own purposes.”

Luz felt a ringing in her ears. “So why—so why are you—why are you telling me this?” She had a sinking feeling that she knew, and everyone in the room with a clear view of her face could discern that she did. Her expressions and body language were completely unguarded. “Are you saying—” an even more visible horrified realization stole over her features and a hand went to clench at the long chord of the necklace hanging at the center of her chest “—are you saying...that _I…?_ That sample...? I’m...?” For Luz, it felt like the room had started spinning, and the ringing only intensified. She didn’t feel like she was making any sense, while the information the Director had just shared with her made a little _too_ _much_ sense.

“Yes.” The response came from a willowy red-headed woman, her cerulean eyes carefully watching Luz as she pushed off of the wall she’d been leaning against. A distant part of Luz recognized her as one of the heroes from the Battle of New York— _Black Widow_ , they’d been calling her.

“But not just anyone,” added a nerdy looking thirties-something man with glasses, his salt-and-pepper hair not matching his tired-but-still-youthful face. “I’m ah, I’m Dr. Bruce Banner by the way.” _The Hulk._ He waved a hand awkwardly. “Nice to meet you. We’ll have to examine you later, but the crux of the matter is that we’ve been dancing around this whole issue by throwing around the term _enhanced individual_ —” here he made air quotes “—but it’s a bit more complicated than that.”

The very recognizable Tony Stark— _Iron Man—_ spoke up from beside him, clapping his hands and swaggering forward. “Oh, can we cut the crap already? We all know that terminology is too vague to be useful to anyone. When they say an _enhanced individual_ —” he also made air quotes “—they mean a super soldier.” Tony paused, then qualified, “Well, at least in this instance. I mean we do have mutants, various other super-powered individuals, the Hulk, handsome cyborgs, and beings that are either aliens or gods.” He grinned cheekily. “In case you’re wondering, I’m one of the handsome cyborgs.”

“Tony,” Pepper warned, exasperated.

“Ugh, don’t be disgusting, Stark.” The man that had been leaning against the wall next to Black Widow objected. _Hawkeye?_

Luz somehow kept track of them as they spoke despite feeling increasingly overwhelmed. The creak of Hawkeye’s light armor as he shifted his body registered in her peripheral hearing and vision.

Stark shrugged as he walked toward an open bar—and how had she not noticed that before? —to fix himself a drink. “I’m not being disgusting; I’m simply stating facts.”

“You’re grandstanding,” Pepper replied.

“It’s not grandstanding if it’s true, Pep.”

“You’re stroking your ego,” Hawkeye retorted as he sidled up to Black Widow’s side. She shifted ever so slightly to make room for him, as if they had some sort of natural gravity that moved them along. It was eerie, how they automatically and subconsciously accommodated each other, and this was without being in a combat situation.

Black Widow’s lips twitched. “Leave Stark alone, Clint. I don’t think he can survive one hour without _someone_ stroking his ego.”

Dr. Banner facepalmed. “Can we—can we just get back to the subject at hand? I think Miss Espinosa-Ortega is having a mild panic attack.”

“I think he’s right,” Pepper noted with a note of mild concern. “How are we going to disclose who the donor is without making this worse?” They all looked back at Luz. Pepper detached herself from where she’d been looking out of the window and made her way over toward the duo consisting of the intern she’d seen around the Tower and said intern’s now visibly trembling friend.

Luz gazed at each of them in turn, the pieces falling neatly into place. A super soldier served as the donor, and one super soldier appeared noticeably absent, but surely that didn’t mean what she thought it did. The door to the common area opened as she pressed them for confirmation, her mind reeling in disbelief. “You said the donation came from a super soldier. That means—”

A voice, familiar from old historical recordings she’d listened to and seen, interrupted her. “Yeah. That means I’m the fa—the donor.” A pause as the speaker cleared his throat, then a quiet, tentative statement followed. “The sample you’ve been inseminated with was mine.”

As soon as his words registered, confirming the conclusion she’d come to on her own, Luz froze, then slowly turned toward the door, her eyes meeting those of Captain-Fucking-America, who stood at the entrance in sweat-drenched gym clothes, hands at his waist and his fists and wrists still taped up for boxing. His exhale sounded weary. “If you decide to go through with this and carry to term, you’ll be having my child.”

Luz felt particularly light as she gazed at him, then her body went limp as black edged her vision and rapidly took over. She fainted dead away in Darcy’s arms, slumping onto her friend.

“Well, that went well,” Tony remarked blithely, swishing his alcohol around and taking a sip from his glass. “Now, who wants a bit of tequila?”


End file.
